U.S. Rep. Mike McIntyre to resign after this term

With 18 years in office and nine congressional terms under his belt, U.S. Rep. Mike McIntyre will have left a huge footprint on the 7th Congressional District when he retires at the end of his term. The Lumberton native’s legacy can be seen in added veterans’ clinics, growing military bases, new fire stations and police stations, town halls and workforce development centers, among other things.

With 18 years in office and nine congressional terms under his belt, U.S. Rep. Mike McIntyre will have left a huge footprint on the 7th Congressional District when he retires at the end of his term. The Lumberton native’s legacy can be seen in added veterans’ clinics, growing military bases, new fire stations and police stations, town halls and workforce development centers, among other things.

“We’ve had a great 18 years,” McIntyre told the StarNews from his office in Washington, D.C. Wednesday about his decision to retire at the end of 2014. “Much has been accomplished and we’re very grateful for the opportunities we’ve had to work on issues and programs directly affecting people’s lives in North Carolina.”

His resignation also leaves a hole in Congress. He’s one of the remaining Blue Dog Democrats and handful of white Democratic Southerners still in the game.

“That old Southern Democratic contingent is just almost totally gone. McIntyre is one of the last of a dying breed,” said Kyle Kondik, managing editor of Sabato’s Crystal Ball at the University of Virginia Center for Politics.

McIntyre commonly bucked his party, voting against Obamacare and for its repeal 40 different times, for instance. He also notably voted against repealing the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” military law for gay service members.

He was arguably the most conservative Democrat in the U.S. House — or one of them.

“I was never about some national partisan agenda. I think that’s been evident from my voting record over the years. It may sound trite, but it’s true. I’ve always looked at every issue as, ‘How does this affect the people back home?’” McIntyre said.

Kondik speculated that McIntyre decided to retire because his ability to get things done in the current congressional environment was nearly halted, coupled with the fact that he had to fight a “hellacious re-election bid every two years.” He narrowly won against former state senator David Rouzer in 2012 by fewer than 700 votes. Rouzer and others to the left and right were lining up again this year to dethrone him.

“There are other things to do in life,” Kondik said.

But McIntyre said he has never shied from a fight and decided through prayer with his wife that he was ready for other opportunities, whether they are in the public or private sectors.

“My family and I spent a lot of time in prayer and discussion over the holidays and we came to the conclusion that we’re ready for a change and a new chapter in our lives,” he said. “So this was purely a personal and professional decision and we’re excited about having an opportunity to serve in other ways.”

His close friend and political adviser, Dave Heller, said McIntyre isn’t stepping down because he couldn’t win, was tired of fighting or because Washington had become too rotten for him to be effective.

Page 2 of 2 - “The congressman is a man of very deep-seated faith, and in 1995 when he first announced for Congress, he genuinely felt led by the Lord to run,” Heller said. “He’s felt called to run for re-election every time since and this time he didn’t feel that calling. He felt like the Lord was telling him to go through a different door.”

It wasn’t immediately clear what will be on the other side of that door.

But as they say, when one door closes another door opens — and that couldn’t be truer for Republicans, who have coveted this district for years and drew it into their favor following the decennial Census.

But as badly as they wanted it, McIntyre hung on, fighting tooth and nail, winning the district in 2012 despite picking up about 300,000 new voters in a GOP-drafted gerrymandered district, and in a district Democrat President Barack Obama lost by 20 points.

For his part, McIntyre said he did his best to build bridges in Washington in a tough environment.

“I think it’s clear there’s way too much polarization on the political scene,” McIntyre said. “I have been one who has sought to work across the aisle.”